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Friday, May 18, 2018

Asking for help isn't a bad thing

I promised to do write some patterns for someone and I thought it would be an easy task. HA!!! They sent me the information in a way that was totally different than what I expected. I thought I could figure it out, but I couldn't. Finally, after a couple of weeks of struggle, I had no choice but to bow my head in shame (because I had made the impression that I knew what I was doing) and I asked for more help. AHA - once I figured out their logical thought process, it was easier (not easy) but easier. I'm now well along my way in that process. OK - so I'm not as far along as I would like, but I'm making progress and the first one should be the hardest - then the process gets easier. Much easier.

So that's what I worked on in the morning. That was OK. Then I loaded that massive quilt on the long arm. The plan is to quilt it today so all is good. It's huge - 108 by 108 so hopefully that will give me a wee bit of time between the rows to get a few things done. I'll have to monitor it closely though as the bobbin may not last the entire row and that will be a pain.

I managed to get the software for the long arm registered but that process took 20 minutes. Funny how simple little tasks can take so long. I was on the phone with the support team (just easier that way - rather than doing it via e-mail) and it wasn't as simple as you would expect. The response came back that my software had expired. No, it hasn't as the clock is still running with 23 days to go. Notice it wasn't on the last day? That would be the norm for me. The tech support guy tried to tell me that it was because my tablet wasn't set to the correct time zone? Seriously??? So I let him take control of the tablet (that technology is so wonderful) and he fixed the time zone and then tried to put in the code himself. It wouldn't work. So we tried another way which involved me running up to the computer (the tablet is attached to the long arm which is in the basement), then running to the other office in the house where the printer is and then back downstairs to enter the code. But it got done and the system is registered. That's all I care about. One more task - DONE!!!!

Then I did a bad thing. I had some errands that I've been meaning to do forever and they weren't getting done. It was a glorious day out so I grabbed all the things that I needed and I was off. It took me two hours in total - I walked the entire way and it was amazing to be outside!!!! That's my downfall. When the weather is nice, I certainly do not want to be in the house. I was at the mall and did some tea research which I'll share with you tomorrow. Going to experiment this morning. I had to stop and buy a pair of socks. My feet were starting to get blisters and that wouldn't do - I was only half done my errands. I bought a pair of shorts at the same time. They ended up being $10 cheaper when I rang them in at the self check-out than what was listed on the tag. I'm OK with that.

I stopped at Starbucks as well. Only because I have a card with money on it. Gosh - everything is so laden with calories and sugar. I ended up buying a cookie that was almost 300 calories. That was my snack for the day. But imagine buying that cookie and a sugary drink? That's a snack of 500 calories (or more) which one would gobble down quickly and then - you're still hungry so you eat more. It's a vicious cycle!! But keeping track of the food I eat on MyFitnessPal (app on my phone) has been a huge help. It's not even the sugar thing - it's the number of calories - that's HUGE and once I started tracking, I haven't looked back and I haven't gained anything!!!!! Of course, I did almost 14,000 steps yesterday, but then I only did 5,000 on Tuesday.

Since I was at the mall and there's a Shopper's, I decided to check my blood pressure which I haven't checked in eons. M could relate to this as every time we went to Shopper's, I checked my blood pressure. It seemed we were there a lot. Oh my - I'm surprised that I'm still alive - 106 over 67 or something like that. DON'T PANIC. Those numbers are right at the bottom of the normal range. I'm good!!!! Got to watch that because my mother has high blood pressure issues so I keep an eye on it, but I don't think there is anything to worry about.

So let's see what quilting stuff I managed to get done. I got the middle border on the Easy Street quilt. That was great and I have four of those blue/orange units left over.

The middle border is now on the Easy Street quilt

That's the mystery quilt by Bonnie Hunter from a number of years ago - I think it was 2012.

Here's all the fabric still sitting in the basket until the quilt is finished. I have to choose what color to use for the last border and binding. Then I'll get those cut and made and sewn. Then make the backing and this one is officially OFF the UFO list and on the "to be quilted" list. Maybe over the weekend, I can finish that.

The leftovers of Easy Street

I'm quite behind on a couple of other tasks (the ones that are posted on my computer monitor so I don't forget them) and I need to focus on those. Got some more supplies yesterday to finish up those other things and I'll be sharing them with you in the near future.

I promised to share my light tablet with you. This is what it looks like. It's super flat and a large surface - 12" by 17". Marilyn just bought one as well and I know she's going to love it. They're not cheap, but so worth it.

Large flat light pad

I love the large size because if you're working with a large pattern (to trace), it can easily accommodate that and the fact that it's pretty flat makes life a whole lot easier with those large patterns.

While I sat at my meeting last night, I steadily worked on my embroidery block and I got a lot done. It's almost time to do some more marking. I'm going to try and finish remarking this block today.

More stitching was accomplished on my block

That's also part of my UFO list for 2018 so that's all good. It's the middle of May and I think I have moved ONE project only to the "to be quilted" pile. I want to get caught up. What I mean is the object was to finish one per month so a wee bit of work is in order to make that happen.

Here the pattern is sitting on the lightbox and the fabric is on top of the pattern (not lined up). It's a breeze to trace.

Getting ready to trace the pattern (after I line it up)

I use a super fine (.005) permanent pen to do my marking. It's easy to use and the lines are amazingly easy to see when you're stitching. They disappear after the stitching is completed (well technically they are still there, but they are hidden by the stitching). And if you make a mistake? Well, it's a new element in the design. The other thing that's nice about using this pen, is that you can mark BEFORE you put the backing on the embroidery. That makes the marking even easier. In this case, the backing is already on so it's not as easy, but still not bad.

Fine permanent pen for marking embroidery

And there is GOOD news. I decided (after promising that I would) that I would deal with this keyboard issue. I went to BestBuy with my $45 worth of coupons. I was helped by a VERY HELPFUL staff member and he opened boxes and I tested keyboards. I decided to go with an ergonomic keyboard with a rest for my wrists. He mentioned that I may have a bit of a learning curve with the keyboard, but I was OK with that.

New keyboard

The verdict??? I LOVE IT!!!!! I love the wrist rest. I love the slight curve in the center, my hands feel much more relaxed and I also bought a can of compressed air to keep the keyboard clean. Thank you BEST BUY for the great help. I'm sending a review this morning - I didn't have time yesterday.

Why or why do we put up with crappy situations when the problem could be fixed? I must resolve in the future that if something is bothering me, I should just get it fixed NOW. Thanks for the push to get the new keyboard.

Then while I was having my dinner, I couldn't stop reading that e-book that I had downloaded to my tablet. For someone who has technology issues from time to time, I sure have a load of electronic devices!!! Anyway, I had the tablet propped up on the table outside and while the dogs entertained themselves, I managed to finish that book. I'm not a fan of e-books, but it was convenient to just swipe instead of having to hold the book while I ate. God - I'm getting lazy now!!!

Set up for reading my e-book

Before they disappear because we have waited so long for them, here's a picture of my tulips in the front garden.

Tulips in the front garden

And here's the trilliums in the forest. When I left for my walk, I went out the back to save a few steps (about 500). I didn't take the girls with me - they were rather ticked off by that fact, but instead of a two-hour walk, it would have been 3 or 4. They are NOT the best-behaved dogs on their leashes.

Trilliums in the forest

On that note, I"m out of here. I've got loads to do and I had better get started.